Was fortunate enough to come across this forum while learning about building a set of DIY speakers.

Currently on a very tight budget especially since I am saving up to put together either a 10” Audio Nirvana set of speakers or a Fostex based kit. Unfortunately shipping is a killer with all of these so even with well priced drivers it will be a fair few months of saving.

In the mean time I need something to listen to and was pleasantly surprised when I found out about the Del Sol project (DelSol - Aura NS3-194-8E - Inexpensive DIY Fullrange Bookshelf Speaker) but after reading the full thread on diyAudio and trying to hunt for the drivers I found out they are no longer available. The project was perfect as it was dirt cheap and simple enough not to eat into my main budget.

I was hoping that someone could point me to a similar budget project i.e. dirt cheap or recommend currently available drivers that would work in the DelSol cabinet. I am a complete newbie at this so have no skills in cabinet/speaker design. Hence the appeal of a full range kit/project.

Thanks for that - I had gone through the 3" list at Madison but wasn't sure if the same cabinet design would work for drivers other than those in the original plan.

Appreciate the help

Robin

Hi Robin,

If you try the Fountek-FR88EX in a De-Sol cabinet:
Necessarily modifications: Increase the inner port length by 1.5 times and if this port is stuffed until a flat FR is achieved(heard) you have made a superior speaker if compared to the Del Sol when using the ordinary rec. drivers : Goes lower= ~78 Hz with much flatter FR too.

Hi Robin,
I'd try the Aura NS3-194-4B first. The other NS3-193's do not sound good in the Delsol box. I don't have any experience with the Fountek.
If you can have a little patience, I will personally purchase and try out the NS3-194-4B and report back.
The original driver went missing before many had a chance to try the relatively simple Delsol build. I'd love it if another driver was a drop in replacement.
Pekar

Hi
Another newbie here, I was looking for a first project but to make life awkward I have very limited space and have to mount the speakers on a wall either side of a patio door, the are very few designs for wall mounting due to the problems with reflections, its just not ideal.
Since I have a big pile of wood and tools I brought a couple of Aura NS3-193-8A drivers and a few filter components and started building, so far I've built 4 boxes with a another in the works. I'm not the best person to give a description of the sound I'm an old guy, my ears don't go above 13000-14000HZ, the speakers will be used mainly for TV (not HT) and some music it's been a few years since I've owned any speakers, these little drivers really surprise me they go lower than I would ever expect and are nice and detailed.

The first box I built was based on Zalp's B3S sealed box design and his comments for using the Aura NS3 193 8a, this was to be my reference design. In his comments he suggests going without BSC and the notch filter for wall mounting, I kept the volume the same at 210cu" but reduced the height 1/2" and increased the depth to compensate. I find it very pleasant to listen to sitting on a bookshelf, it doesn't go super low but the bass is smooth and pleasant, I played around with the notch filter the difference was very subtle to my old ears.

The second speaker was based on the DelSol design, again I kept the volume as designed at 268cu" but reduced the height 1/2" and increased the depth to compensate, I couldn't figure out how to model the bottom chamber/vent so I made it extra large so I could fill it with wood blocks to see the effects, this also had the effect of reducing the area of the baffle. Modelling the speaker as a single chamber with WinIS suggested a port 1" dia. and 3.5" long port would tune the box to 56HZ and produce a fairly even low end response, seems too good to be true probably I've entered something incorrectly. Unfortunately I haven't had much time to test this design as box 3 which is a better shape for the space I have had already been built.

Box 3 has the same volume and port as box 2 but is long and slim for wall mounting with the same adjustable chamber/vent on the bottom. I was very happy with this version as expected the low end is noticeably deeper than the sealed box. The doesn't seem to be any need for BSC with the speaker against the wall.

Box 4 is inspired by the Bandit design its the same box as box 3 with the bottom port blocked off and a new baffle with 2 ports 3/4" dia and 4" long. It goes just as low but is smoother and more detailed I think the two port design helps control the speaker case vibrations, I've been using 3/4" pine boards to build most of these and it has surprised me how much bracing it has taken to control vibration.

I think I'm ready to build the final pretty version unless another idea comes up. The TABAQ design looks interesting the shape would suit my space but I doubt if my drivers would work work in that design, it would only take a few hours work to find out Hmmmmm.

Anyway a few ideas for you to look at, if they would be useful I can post more pictures/details.

I'm happy to report that the Aura NS3-194-4B sounds good in the Delsol box. I'll post more on the old Delsol thread soon, but a quick comparison showed much promise.
This is the only driver I've found that I could say that about.
At under $14/pr (current sale price), I'd say the Delsol project has risen from the ashes.
Pekar